Clipped Wings
by Sasuke-N-Sakura4Ever
Summary: What would happen if the Architect of Evolution made a challenge to the Architect of the Shield? A follow-up of Monday Night Raw from 05/12/2014. Possibly light Rolleigns.
1. Chapter 1

**H****ello everyone! This is my first actual two-shot into the fandom of the WWE, so please bear with me. I had this idea since Monday Night Raw on May 12, 2014, about what would happen if each member of the Shield faced up against their counterpart in Evolution. When I saw that Bastista and Roman Reigns battled it out, I really wanted to see something similar happen between the two architects of their respected factions. There are hints here and there of mild slash possibly between the Shield...but nothing too drastic at the moment. I hope you all enjoy!**

What was best for business? Triple H always considered what would benefit the company. He took into account the affect that one call, one superstar, or one match could have on the entire industry as a whole. It was his duty as the COO of the WWE, to make sure that no matter what happened...the decisions he made would ultimately allow his empire to achieve the success it deserved.

With his goal in mind, Triple H made his way down the aisle to the ring. After that events that had taken place the previous week with the Shield, he pondered long and hard about next move he should make in the on-going war with the monsters he himself created.

The reaction of the crowd was expected as he took a look around him, their booing echoing throughout the entire arena.

"You know, I have to give it to the Shield," he began, a chuckle escaping his throat as the tone of the crowd changed to cheers at the mere mention of their name, "Last week, what they did brought back memories of something I myself would have done as a member of Evolution. Back attacks, three on one, you name it and we did it."

Pacing around the arena, he continued, "However, one thing remains the same. I said it once, and I'll say it again," he looked up, "The Shield are just a bunch of rebellious children who keep trying to poke a stick at whatever they can find. They're just asking to get bit."

Triple H allowed the people to shout and praise them, their so-called heroes. It didn't matter to him, at Payback, he would show all of them just who the dominate faction was between Evolution and the Shield. Payback, however, was still a few weeks away; there was still time consider his options going into the anticipated rematch between the two groups. Tonight...it was more personal.

"Something last week got me to thinking...I'm going to show you people a few videos so you can understand where I'm going with this," he turned to the monitor and pointed his finger, "Roll the tape."

The footage on the jumbo screen was of last week's ambush of Evolution by the Shield, the response of the crowd was obvious, any damage that was done to him, Orton, or Batista was worthy of praise in their eyes.

"Stop the tape right there."

At his instruction the video paused, halting it at the moment each Shield member began their assault on Triple H and his partners.

"Do you see it?" he asked, his attention turning towards the audience members, the energy they were giving off was almost electrifying.

"No? Keep watching. Roll the next tape."

The next clip began to play, Evolution was standing in the middle of the ring, Triple H addressing each member of the Shield individually.

"_Roman Reigns, you will fail to adapt. And at Payback...you will per-"_

_His words falling short following another surprise ambush, courtesy of the Hounds of Justice._

"Stop the tape."

The image froze at the moment in time where Triple H's massive figure was planted face first into the mat, a fired up Seth Rollins continued to land punch after punch into the head of the Game.

Triple H stood there for a minute, his eyes landing on every single person in the sold out arena, "So do you see it yet people?" He began to tread the ring once again.

"Since most of you here tonight probably have the intelligence of a house fly, I'll tell you," the negative response he received only seemed to entertain him more, "In both of the videos from last week, there was a specific person who had the guts to actually try to pull one over on me. And that hasn't been the only instance he has done so. Over the last few weeks, I have been the target of his attacks, more-so than either Orton or Batista. Now if he thought for one second, that I was going to turn a blind eye to that," Triple H's face darkened, "He was dead wrong."

This was where his plan would begin to take action.

"Seth Rollins, you and I, we're similar in a lot of ways. We're both considered 'The Architect' of our factions...the so-called glue keeping everything together so to speak. Heck, without us, there would be no Shield...and there would be no Evolution. I can state that as the truth. I've watched you guys over the last few months, I remember that point in time...where the Shield almost crumbled."

The fans responded to the words with a few of their own. Chants for the "Hounds of Justice" growing with each passing second throughout the arena.

Triple H looked straight in to the camera pointed in front of him as he continued, "But it didn't. And I can say that the only reason the Shield didn't disband that night was because you took the actions you did. The idea you had was crazy, heck, it could have backfired on you! But, somehow you managed to get Roman and Dean to see eye to eye. Your quick thinking is what kept you guys together. Now, I'm not spouting all of this as praise to you Seth, I am only stating the facts. I can't say I know what is going through your mind as you continue to throw punches at me."

He turned his head to the aisle leading to the backstage locker room, "However, I do know that I want to make an example of you right here...tonight."

The people seemed to light up as they began to realize what his words were hinting towards.

"Tonight, I challenge you Seth Rollins to a one-on-one match," he took a moment to adjust the cuffs on his suit, "And you know? I'm a fair guy, I'll leave Randy Orton and Batista in back, so long as you come to the ring alone as well. Let's see who really lives up to title of 'The Architect' here tonight. But just remember Seth," he paused for a moment, a small smirk beginning to adorn his face, "I said last week that I would deal with you myself, and I plan to clip those wings of yours, so you'll never be able to fly again."

The COO could hear the shocked reactions of Jerry, Michael Cole, and JBL all the way on the sidelines of the ring; even with the fans screaming in anticipation, it was almost as if he had gained an adrenaline rush from the energy the building had in it tonight.

"So what do you say Seth? Are you gonna man up and face me?" he grinned, "Or will you hide in the back with your tail between your legs because you'd be alone...without your buddies protecting you."

After a moment of silence, the jumbo screen lit up, and all three members of the Shield stood together, standing tall and proud. The sight of them caused the crowd to go crazy.

"Triple H," Seth spoke up as he adjusted his glove, "You should know, I never back down from a challenge."

He looked straight into the camera, "You're on!"

The insane response was almost deafening to the man who stood in the middle of the ring, he watched as the three of them walked out of the view of the camera, the screen fading to black once more. A smirk slowly began to spread across his features as he made his way out of the ring. All was going according to his plan, he honestly should have realized it a lot sooner. Dave Batista had had the right idea of targeting the Shield individually, granted his thought process was blinded by anger and frustration. It would make sense for him to want to challenge Roman Reigns, he was the strongest member of the Shield, a person who could give even the Animal himself a decent run for his money. However, Batista in reality...targeted the wrong man. As he had learned with Evolution, a powerhouse...was only as strong as the brains behind him. In the end, this war came down to only one thing, and that was guts and wit. Triple H had both, and he would deal with Seth Rollins tonight...slowly...very slowly. Tonight, he would see to it that Seth Rollins would be the one to fail to adapt...and perish as a result.

_'When you take away the brain...the body as a whole will cease to function.'_

**So this was the first part. The next and final chapter will be much longer than this, and I assure you you will not be disappointed. I hope you liked it!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Part 2 is now available for your enjoyment. Thank you all very much for the kind words regarding this little story, it makes me happy. Please do enjoy!**

"What a main event we have tonight that was just announced by Triple H moments ago!" Jerry Lawler commented as the COO made his way backstage.

"I have to agree with you King, its like Payback is coming to us a little early," John 'Bradshaw' Layfield commented, "We're going to see something great here tonight, one on one without any ringside assistance."

"I find it hard to believe Triple H is going to keep his word on that," Michael Cole followed up, "After the behavior we've been seeing from the Authority over the last few weeks regarding the Shield, you can't honestly expect Triple H to come down here by himself can you?"

"Will you stop with your conspiracy theories Cole, every week you come out here spouting your nonsense," JBL replied, "Here we have a great match, and you're trying to ruin it for everybody!"

"Tell me you're joking..."

"Well either way, we're going to see what happens as the night unfolds," Jerry intervened, "Whether Triple H will keep his word or not remains to be seen."

* * *

"Something is definitely off about this whole thing," Roman Reigns spoke as he watched his younger teammate concentrate on stretching his hamstring muscles.

The hallway they were occupying was in a secluded area near the front of the arena, allowing them easier access to the doors where the fans would sit.

"You don't think I know that going into this?" Seth's back was turned to him, tapping the toe of his boot to the ground as he completed his set of stretches for his right leg.

"Then why don't you let us come down with you?" Dean Ambrose chimed in, arriving with bottles of water for the three of them. He tossed one to Roman, who caught it with ease, "Its not like we should start following the rules now just because he 'promised to keep his boys in the back,'" he explained in a sarcastic manner.

A sigh escaped him as Seth turned around, his hand signaling Dean to toss him the water.

"I think you're being a little too stubborn about this dude," Dean reasoned again, handing him the bottle.

After taking a brief swig of the cold beverage Seth looked at the two of them, "I'm not being stubborn. We just don't know what we'll be getting into with this. Here we are, two weeks away from 'Payback...' and suddenly I get called out to have a match with Triple H?" he leaned against the wall, "Why put ourselves at a disadvantage if he decides to ambush all three of us? Its in our best interest for me to go out there alone for now...at least until we know what he has in mind."

Roman kept silent for a moment, true, they didn't know what to expect. Never did they think Triple H would have the guts to try and do anything to them without the help of 'Tweedledee and Tweedledum,' as he personally liked to call Randy Orton and Batista behind their backs.

"We aren't saying that your idea is wrong," he spoke up, "But if he is planning to try and take us out one by one..."

"I get you, after last week, I doubt he wouldn't come out there without an ace up his sleeve..."

Roman grunted, it already irked him enough that Batista practically took his frustration out on Seth the Friday before on Smackdown during their match. He didn't like this...not one bit, one look from the corner of his eye told him that Dean was also frustrated with position they were in.

"We just don't want to see you get hurt."

Seth looked between the two of them and shook his head, letting out a slight chuckle, "Guys...we've taken beatings before haven't we? Come on, I don't plan to lose tonight okay? We're the Shield, have a little faith."

"Oh I have all the faith in the world in you dude," Dean replied, "I just don't trust those cream puffs to give you a fair chance. Like Roman said, we just don't need you hurt."

"I think, at least for a time, Triple H will keep his word tonight. If he tries anything funny, just do your thing okay? I'm not planning to be a martyr, I don't plan to go down without a fight. What I plan to do...is win."

Dean held his hands up in the air, "Alright then, so long as you understand. I trust you know what you're doing. Now if you'll excuse me, I think I forgot something on the way back."

Seth returned to his stretching exercises as he listened to Dean's footsteps grow quieter.

"If he pulls anything, don't expect me to just sit back here and watch you get hurt again."

Seth finished his count of ten before tapping the toe of his left boot on the floor to shake his leg out, "I didn't tell you stay put did I?" his reply was almost amused, he knew it irritated him to no end that Seth was always on the receiving end of majority of the punishment. Such were the roles they played in the ring, because of the skills he had with his flying maneuvers...of course there were more risks involved, not to mention he was the smallest out of the three of them.

"No, but don't think I didn't catch on to what you were implying."

"Look," he turned around, the expression he saw on the big man's face was not happy at all, "For now, just let me handle it. Dean and I let you do your thing last week okay? We only got involved when the other two did remember?"

"But at that point I wasn't out there by myself against who knows what."

It was quiet for a moment, neither really sure what to say to make the situation better.

"I know this sucks...okay?" he said, running his fingers through his hair "I'm just...well I can't change how you feel about the whole thing. I can at least promise I plan to give him a good ass kicking."

Roman chuckled at that, "At least he won't end up unscathed."

"See? There's the spirit! Look, I need to finish getting ready alright? I need to be at the top of my game tonight."

"I get it," Roman pushed himself off of the wall, stretching his stiff back muscles, "I'll leave you alone for a bit."

He watched his younger teammate for a few moments before heading down the hallway, as much as he hated playing the waiting game...he had no choice this time. However he _would_ see to it that Seth would not be hurt tonight.

* * *

The night continued on without any further incident as Seth waited for the security to signal for him to make his way to the ring. He was more than prepared to give it his all, to show Triple H, who exactly deserved to hold the title of 'Architect.' He let out a deep breath as he heard his music begin to play, the fans lighting up as if on cue, waiting for him to make his appearance. As he had done so many times before, he entered the main area, passing fans along the way.

His eyes scanned them carefully, keeping a watching eye over the slightest movement. As promised, he came alone...that however did not mean his opponent would keep his end of the bargain. After taking another glimpse behind him, he jumped over the barrier wall separating the audience from the ring, everyone in the crowd cheering for him. Despite the electrifying atmosphere and the roaring of every fan in the arena...Seth felt strangely calm despite what could possibly be waiting for him the moment the COO would grace everyone with his presence. He entered the ring swiftly, looking to the area leading backstage.

_'Let's see if you have it in you to actually stick to your word.'_

After several moments of drawn out silence from the back, Triple H's music began playing, the boos of the fans echoing loudly around him. It was obvious after everything he did over these last few months, he would lose the favor of the crowd...Triple H even seemed happy from the negative response. Seth watched him appear from backstage, his body completely focused...ready for a fight.

_'So you did come alone.'_

To be honest, Seth was sure he wouldn't have the guts to. A king never fought his own battles, as he learned when he worked under him with Roman and Dean, he always sent people to do his dirty work for him. Even over the last few weeks, he wouldn't dare approach the three of them himself...unless someone had already roughened them up beforehand. It took him a moment to notice that aside from the trademark water bottle the Game normally carried with him to the ring, he also had a microphone in the hand. His face was all business as he entered the ring, stopping in front of him. Their eyes locking into a staring contest for a brief moment before Triple H brought the microphone up to his lips, a smirk playing on his face.

"I have to say Seth...I didn't think it was possible for any of you three to come down to the ring alone."

The crowd in response let out a loud groan at his words.

Seth spread his arms out as he backed up a little bit, "I can say the same to you."

Triple H in turn, frowned at the comment, clearly he had heard it even over the loud cries of people in the sold out building.

"Ring the bell ref," he spoke up, throwing the microphone to a corner of the ring.

The sound of the bell toned, indicating the beginning of the match. Both men circling the ring carefully, eyes never leaving the other, like lions searching for an opening as they hunted their prey.

Moving almost in sync, they both grabbed each other by the shoulders, trying to gain the upper hand by knocking the other off their feet. Triple H was clearly the stronger one in terms of power, easily able to knock Seth to the ground. The latter flipped away, dodging the punch clearly aiming for his chest, taking advantage of the opening with a kick to the shoulder. Up to his feet quickly, he dashed in backing Triple H into a corner of the ring, beating into him multiple punches to the head, stomach, and sides...only breaking the hold as the referee began his count to five.

Letting out a yell, Seth backed up to the opposite corner, making a running dash towards Triple H, slamming into the bigger man's abdomen. Not one to allow the momentum to diminish, he pulled him by the arm, the Game hitting the ropes on one end as he prepared to knock him outside the ring, only to be stop being a powerful clothesline maneuver, knocking the wind from his lungs briefly.

"You think that's all it takes to knock me down?!" he heard Triple H say before feeling him grabbing a handful of hair, bringing the smaller man to his feet. He went to work with an assault of fast and powerful punches to which Seth attempted to guard with his hands, the onslaught stopping again before the referee reached the count of five. Resting for a moment in the corner of the ring, his eyes slowly began to register Triple H running towards him in an attempt to do further damage to his hurt mid-section. His quick reflexes allowed him to bring a boot up to collide with the face of the Cerebral Assassin, knocking the big man to the ground. After a quick moment of regaining his breath, he quickly dashed over to the fallen man, performing his signature standing shooting star press on the Game.

The audience cheered as he went for the pin.

"1! 2!..." A kick-out from Triple H.

Rolling over slowly, he began to make his way back to his feet, arms reaching to grip onto the turnbuckle. If he couldn't keep him down with strength, he would just have to do what he did best...beat him with flying moves. Climbing to the top of the turnbuckle, he could faintly hear the referee check on his opponent, he positioned himself, readying to land right onto his target. Before he could take flight, he felt someone push him off the top of the turnbuckle, feeling himself landing shoulder first to the floor at ringside.

The sound of the referee ringing the bell indicating that it was an outside interference...of course he did...a king never fought alone.

"Cowards..." he seethed through his teeth when he heard Triple H begin yelling instructions to what appeared to be Randy Orton and Batista to get him back into the ring.

The crowd looked on, clearly not pleased as Seth was pulled into the ring by the other members of Evolution, each one positioned on either side of him, restricting his movement as Triple H recovered from his earlier hit, a microphone now in hand.

"You look a little out of it Seth," he spoke between breaths as he knelt down in front of him, a smirk on his face, "It seems coming alone was a bad idea for you after all."

He was met with a powerful kick to the gut, causing the smaller man to practically keel over had it not been for the two men holding him in place.

"Now before you people tell me...he didn't keep his end of the bargain, I did in fact keep my word."

The people around them began to boo as Triple H landed another cheap punch to the gut of Seth Rollins, the younger man attempting to fight out of the hold Orton and Batista had him in, only to be met with an elbow to the back of the head by Orton.

"I did tell you that the members of Evolution would not come out with me."

Seth lifted his head up, trying to come up with a plan to get out of this situation in order to give them some sort of fight...he should have known...a fair fight was not in Evolution's rule book.

"I never said they weren't going to come out at all."

A rush of adrenaline went through Seth as he landed a kick to the back of the shin of Batista, loosening the Animal's hold on him for a second, which was all he needed to break free, an all out brawl beginning in the corner. The fans were getting behind him as he knocked Orton out of the ring, his momentum growing before it was quickly snatch away, feeling himself lifted to the air from behind into a suplex, courtesy of the Game himself.

"Now now Seth we don't need you thinking you can possibly beat these odds. This was the plan after all. It's a proven fact that a body cannot function without it's brain, once we get rid of you...the other two will crumble like sand."

"B...Bastard..."

The Shield was stronger than that, they didn't just depend on one person...no one man was better than the other. Each functioned with their own unique move-set, even on their own...they were strong.

Dazed from the hit he had received at the hands of Randy Orton; he felt himself be lifted to his knees once again, his body hanging lifelessly. If it hadn't been for Batista, he'd be laying face first on the mat.

"This is a sight that I could definitely get used to. The Shield should follow your example right now Seth, on your knees...grovelling at my feet. Hey! Maybe if you beg for mercy...I might be generous and let you free."

He saw the shadow stop right in front of him, watching as it slowly bent down to his eye level.

"So what do you say Seth? Are you going to beg my forgiveness? ...Not that you won't get what's coming to you at 'Payback' but hey! I could spare you tonight at least."

Seth felt a fire engulf his chest after hearing those words, and with all the strength he could muster...he lifted his head, landing powerful headbutt to the COO, knocking the Game to the ground. He felt a sense of triumph travel through his veins as the bigger man rolled outside the ring, his hand clutching his forehead. A scream left his lips as he felt Batista land a blow to the back of his head, Randy Orton appearing in front of him, dealing hit after vicious hit to his abdomen.

"Lift his head up!" he heard Triple H roar, his voice clearly agitated at the lack of disrespect.

He gritted through his teeth as Orton pulled him by the hair, forcing him to looked up at Triple H's silhouette. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust on the figure in front of him, an angered look on the face of the COO, who now his precious sledgehammer in hand.

"I told you earlier tonight that I was going to make an example of you little hummingbird," he said, his hand twirling the dangerous weapon, fingers itching to put it to use, "I'm going to personally enjoy pulling your wings out, you should feel honored Seth! I plan to use you to relay a message to every single superstar in that locker room...I will show them what happens to someone who even thinks about double-crossing me!"

He leveled his hammer, "And everyone here will see tonight...that you failed to adapt, and now...you will perish for it."

Triple H dropped the microphone to the ground, his grip tightening around the sledgehammer in his hands, Seth's battered figure barely being able to kneel on its own. He smirked as he readied the weapon for the attack, knowing he would enjoy this very much.

* * *

Roman Reigns made a dash for the ring, letting out a furious growl as he speared Triple H before he could landed a hit on his wounded comrade. They should have known, _he_ shouldn't have let him come out here by himself. Evolution had found a loophole...one they didn't even take into account. He couldn't begin to explain the relief he felt when he collided with the mid-section of Triple H, saving Seth from what would have been a career ending hit. Randy Orton and Batista dropped Seth like a rag-doll as they came to their partner's aid. Their attacks quickly stopped as a severely pissed Dean Ambrose stormed into the ring, swinging a steel chair into the back of both members of Evolution, forcing them out of the ring.

"Get back here you cowards!"

Dean was up on the ropes taunting their adversaries, a fire burning in his veins. Had they been a second later, they wouldn't have made it on time. He cursed the backstage interference that conveniently placed itself all around the locker room and at various points of the arena. He jumped out of the ring with steel chair in hand, chasing the members of Evolution to the back, enraged at what they were going to do to his teammate, his brother.

"Damn cowards!" he yelled backstage, knowing better than to go in after them.

* * *

Back in the ring, Roman knelt down beside Seth who clearly was still very much out of it from the brutal three on one beating he had taken prior to their interference.

Gently he helped the smaller man stand up, the people around them cheering, clearly relieved that Triple H's plan did not come to pass.

"Come on Seth you're gonna be okay."

"Should have...listened," Seth responded slowly, clutching onto the ropes in front of him. The back of his head was throbbing violently from the hit earlier, the rest of his body screaming for him to allow it to fall to the ground and stay there.

Roman helped him stay upright as Dean came back into the ring, a look of concern on his face as he approached them, chair still in hand in case anyone dared to attack them again.

"How is he dude?"

"Out of it. We need to get him to the back, I think he's seeing stars...literally."

That was the last bit of conversation Seth heard before his vision went out.

* * *

A groan escaped his lips as he came to, his eyes adjusting to the dimly lit medical room. How long had he been out? Seth attempted to sit up, only to be stopped by Roman, who had been sitting at his bedside.

"I felt like I'd been hit with a hammer."

"Close enough."

He would have laughed it off, had it not been for the frigid atmosphere that filled the room, it was obvious to anyone that the powerhouse was in a rather foul mood.

"I'm really sorry," He finally said.

Seth turned his head slowly to look at his comrade, "Wait...what are _you _ sorry for?"

"Not being able to make it on time."

"If I recall...you speared him before I got hit with a sledgehammer...not really sure if that's my scrambled brains talking but..."

He watched Roman flinch at mention of what could have been, the older man resting his head against the table by Seth's arm.

"I let you get hurt."

Seth blinked a few times before attempting to console him, his arm feeling like a ton of bricks as he gently patted him on the head.

"Hey, don't sweat it okay? This is what we all signed up for. This kind of stuff is going to happen. I can't expect you to always have to rush in and save me Roman."

"Yeah but..."

He heard the door to the room open, "Those bastards left the property," Dean spoke up, alerting the two of them of his presence, Roman quickly lifted his head, his eyes staying glued to the ground.

"Its such a shame they ran with their tails between their legs, considering I wanted to bash their brains in," the former champion continued, not noticing the private moment they had been sharing mere seconds ago.

"Probably for the better, you aren't the only one who wants to get their hands on them."

A heavy silence filled the room before Dean spoke up finally.

"We should have expected nothing less from a bunch of cream puffs," he grunted, obviously frustrated with their current situation.

Seth let out a sigh as he gingerly touched the back of his head, a pack of ice sitting on the table next to his bed. The medical examiner must have been in here at some point to look him over.

"How bad did he say the damage was?" he asked, diverting their attention from their thoughts.

"Concussion caused by trauma to the back of the head," Roman explained, "You're lucky you even got away with that," the lecturing tone in Roman's voice did not escape Seth's ears, nor did the subtle tightening of the big man's fists in his lap, trying to contain his anger.

"I'm sorry guys...it was stupid of me to go out on my own okay?"

"We aren't mad at you dude, you only did what you were told to do."

"It's more about we're pissed about what _would_ have happened had we been a second later," Roman chimed in, "That hammer put people in the hospital, and it even ended a few careers..." he sighed, "We were lucky we got to you when we did."

Seth grunted, adjusting the pack of ice near his neck, his head was still throbbing, he couldn't even sit up without experiencing a slight jolt of vertigo.

"We need to plan ahead now...to make sure something like this doesn't happen again."

"No, _you_ need to work on recovering from that blow to the head. Evolution can wait until next week...and when I get my hands on Triple H, I personally will show him what happens when he puts his hands on you or Dean."

"Well aren't you Mr. High and Mighty," Dean retorted in an attempt to lighten the mood, earning him a glare from Roman.

"Well who said you get to have all the fun? I plan to dish out my own brand of justice. Remember, you're not the only one who was pissed at what they wanted to do to Seth tonight."

"I never said you weren't pissed, I only stated what I plan to do."

"And I sa-"

"Is this some kind of competition you two? Come on man, give it a rest."

**Well that's pretty much it folks, thank you for tuning in! I might at some point add another extra part to this to show the backstage interference involving Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns if you all so wish it. For now...I plan to sleep. Work calls in the AM.**


End file.
